Complaint to seek probe of Orange texting

Former state House candidate Sean Ashby said he's going to file a complaint with the state attorney Tuesday seeking an investigation into the Orange County leaders involved in the textgate scandal.

"The complaint seeks an investigation into members of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners for violations related to destruction of public records and improper public input, among other allegations," Ashby wrote in a news release.

Ashby said he would take the action in response to comments made by representatives for former Orange-Osceola State Attorney Lawson Lamar and his successor Jeff Ashton, both of whom said they were not looking into the public records issue due in part to a lack of any formal complaint.

Ashby, an east Orange County resident and teacher, said he's been approached to run next year for the District 4 County Commission seat now held by Jennifer Thompson. But Ashby said he's not made a decision on whether to run, and that's not what is motivating the complaint.

"There's a lot of questions I have as a citizen," Ashby said in an interview. "We need to find out what really happened."

A spokeswoman for Ashton said he could not comment on a pending complaint.

Several Orange County leaders deleted text messages from their cell phones during a Sept. 11 hearing on a sick-time ballot measure. Some texts were later recovered, but some officials say they've lost those and other messages from their personal phones that could be public records if they discussed official business.

The county is now being sued over the issue by the group behind the sick-time initiative, which commissioners voted to keep off the fall ballot.

That group, Citizens for a Greater Orange County, has also asked for Mayor Teresa Jacobs to call for a wider investigation into the potential destruction of public records and lobbyists' interactions with commissioners and other foes of their proposal.

Jacobs has said it's premature to call for formal probe while the civil cases are pending against the county. Those calling for an investigation have countered that it's rare for a criminal inquiry to await an outcome from civil proceedings.

Thompson was among those who have deleted texts that she says she can no longer recover, including 32 from the day of the sick time hearing with a Walt Disney World lobbyist. Thompson has downplayed the significance of those texts, dubbing them "girl talk."

Thompson said she's "fine with an investigation if they want to do one," but added, "I'm not sure they're going to find anything different" than the civil cases would.

Thompson said she plans to run again for another four-year term in 2014, and would "welcome the opposition" if Ashby opted to enter the race. Thompson said she's not sure what Ashby's reasons for filing the complaint were but speculated it could be "somewhat politically motivated."